Blood Donation, Green Jobs, and the EPA

Sixteen Democratic senators sign a letter urging the FDA to overturn a 1983 ban on gay man donating blood.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-GA) tries to revive cap-and-trade by rebranding it as a green jobs measure.

Sen. Linda Murkowski (R-AK) has been smeared by the media for filing a resolution of disapproval to stop the EPA from abusing the Clean Air Act.

1. HEALTH

Sixteen Democratic senators sign a letter urging the FDA to overturn a 1983 ban on gay man donating blood.

CEI Expert Available to Comment: Warren Brookes Fellow Ryan Young on why Republican senators should join their colleagues in overturning the ban.

“Enlarging the pool of eligible blood donors is an unabashed good. It’s a classic gay rights issue. It’s also a health issue. Blood would be more readily available for patients who need it. Economists would add that increasing the supply of blood will lower its price – a good thing in this age of rapidly rising health care costs.”

 

2. CONGRESS

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) tries to revive cap-and-trade by rebranding it as a green jobs measure.

CEI Expert Available to Comment: Vice President for Strategy Iain Murray on why “green jobs” are a liberal fantasy.

“Green jobs, it would seem, are a magic bullet for the administration, solving the problems of unemployment, poverty, com­munity degradation (and therefore crime, presumably), class struggles, public health, terrorism, and global warming at a stroke. What could possibly lead anyone to object to them? The answer is — as ever, for a conserv­ative — real-world experience.”

 

3. ENVIRONMENT

Sen. Linda Murkowski (R-AK) has been smeared by the media for filing a resolution of disapproval to stop the EPA from abusing the Clean Air Act.

CEI Expert Available to Comment: Senior Fellow Marlo Lewis on why attacks on Murkowski’s resolution are missing the point.

“Contrary to Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and other critics, the resolution is not a referendum on EPA’s science. Rather, it is a referendum on the constitutional propriety of unelected bureaucrats, courts, and eco-litigation groups setting climate and energy policy for the nation.”